Forwarned
by QueenCat1012
Summary: She was the Potter Princess, who had a head full of worries and an inability to understand the signs being thrown her way. He was a menace to society, loathed by people who thought they knew him. Together they search for the truth. Fighting prejudice and injustice at every turn. (Don't want to give too much away in the summary. Just try it. What have you got to lose?)
1. Prologue

**Authors Note: In need of a beta reader for this story, to edit grammar and insert correct punctuation. I suck at that stuff. This story will mainly be from Lily's POV but there will be parts done in Albus and James's POV too. Anyway, enjoy.**

Prologue

Lily Luna Potter awoke to darkness.

This was nothing new, as she'd been waking to darkness rather frequently these last few weeks. Her mind simply just did not want to settle and every time she managed to fall asleep it was inevitable that her churning thoughts would interrupt the few blissful moments she'd managed to capture. Over the past week or so, she was sure that she'd only managed around two hours of uninterrupted sleep, if you could even call it that, that was surely because her body had become so completely and utterly exhausted that even her spinning thoughts couldn't fight back the almost death like oblivion of passing out.

For a while Lily lay there in her warm four poster bed and stared at the red velvet hangings. She breathed an uneasy sigh, which sounded far too loud in the oppressive silence of her dorm room. She listened intently for the sound of her roommates and noted the steady deep breathing of the four other Gryffindor fifth years, that were currently occupying the room. Scowling as a sudden wave of intense jealously swept over her, she curled her hands into fists and blinked rapidly to try and prevent the tears of frustration from leaking. Oh, to be able to sleep so soundly and peacefully, they had it so easy.

Truth be told Lily didn't know exactly why she was finding it so hard to sleep and the relentless churning of her mind made absolutely no sense to her whatsoever, it never did. She just felt, as she had done every night for the past two weeks, that something incredibly terrible was going to happen. She knew it was nonsense. She was at Hogwarts, the safest place in the world. She was surrounded by friends and family that loved her and would do anything to protect her. Nothing bad was going to happen and logically she knew that. But no matter how hard she tried to will herself to forget the gut-wrenching panic that overcame her every time she woke in the night, she just couldn't.

Rubbing her eyes furiously she pulled back the bed covers and lightly placed her feet on the cold stone floor. She shivered and grabbed her fluffy robe from where it hung on one of the posts of her bed, wrapped it snugly around her and yawned. She knew now after fruitlessly struggling for the past few days that there was simply no chance that she'd be able to fall asleep again and with this thought she silently padded towards the door that would lead to the common room. No one would be awake yet of course but reading a book by the warm fire was a far better option than lying in her bed for the next three hours, ruminating on the cold dark feeling seeping through her.

She tiptoed down the twenty four steps, taking care not to make any noise. Her brow furrowed and she smirked slightly as her gaze trailed over the suit of armour at the bottom of the steps, internally debating with herself as to the pros and cons of "accidentally" knocking it over and waking the rest of her house. Pro: She would have some company. Con: They'd all be extremely grumpy and probably not the kind of company she wished for. Dismissing the childish idea, she didn't give the mass of metal a second glance as she entered the dimly lit common room.

It was oddly sinister at this time of night, or rather early morning. Shadows seemed to leap out at her from behind the plush armchairs and the unlit fireplace loomed before her like a great stone mouth, ready to swallow her whole. She shook her head at such silly imagery and took out her wand. Pointing it at the readily stacked grate, she smiled bemusedly as a whoosh of flames sprouted from the end of the tip and set the logs alight. The common room was much less sinister now that the fire was crackling merrily, the shadows all vanishing as the mighty orange flames chased them into the furthest corners of the room.

Yawning once more, Lily picked up a random book from one of the few shelves that were haphazardly placed around the room and settled into the squashy chair closest to the fire. Flipping it to the first page she began to read and soon forgot about her worries as she happily became immersed in a tale about a courageous Wizard named George who fought off a rampaging dragon in Libya. The uncomfortable feeling in her gut though, never abated but Lily tried her damnedest to ignore it.


	2. Chapter 1: Trials and Tribulations

**Chapter One: Trials and Tribulations**

**Albus POV**

"Don't take this the wrong way, but you look like crap."

Albus jumped slightly at the familiar voice of his baby sister and scowled at her grumpily as he entered the common room that morning. He'd woken early and practically dragged himself down from his dorm so that he could mentally prepare himself for the day ahead. Quidditch trials were today and he was pretty sure that if he turned up on the pitch without full preparation, that James would just laugh at him and tell him to sod off before he could even mount a broom.

His older brother had always taken Quidditch seriously but this year was different. James had become more intense since he'd been awarded the Captains badge that summer. It also happened to be James's final year at Hogwarts and he was determined that his one and only year of Captaincy be successful. Al hadn't really had the opportunity to try out for quidditch in his previous six years at Hogwarts, the team had always been solidly certain. James was obviously the Seeker, he had been so since his first year, walking in his fathers footsteps. Then there was his cousin Fred Jr taking up one of the Beaters positions along with Olivia Wood a friend of the family. Lucy and Molly, his Uncle Percy's girls, were chasers as was Lee Jordan's son, River. The position of Keeper this year however was now open, as his older cousin Dominique had graduated from Hogwarts that year and was now playing Quidditch professionally for the Chudley Cannons. This news greatly delighted his Uncle Ron but her mother Fleur was not so pleased, always hoping that her tomboy of a daughter would suddenly become a perfect lady when she left school.

Albus remembered the last time Dom had been forced to act like a Lady. It had been his god-brother Teddy and her sister Vic's wedding. The purple dress she'd been ordered to wear as one of the bridesmaids had actually looked pretty good on Dom but she'd whined and moaned all day about how unfair it was that the boys could wear robes but she couldn't. He grinned at the memory, yes Dom had always been one of the guys and he was going to miss her this year.

Turning his attention back to his sister, he noticed that she was watching him with a bemused expression. "What?" he asked warily, looking down at his pajamas, in case his dorm mate Carrick Finnegan had turned them pink again whilst he'd slept. Carrick was a good mate but he was an avid fan of James and Fred, always trying to impress them by pranking Albus at any opportunity.

"Nothing. You were just doing that thing again." She smirked at him and returned her attention to the book in her hands.

"What thing?" He growled. Albus was never in the best moods at this time of day, he hated mornings.

"Oh you know." She waved her hand airily. "The one where you space out and talk to yourself inside your own head." She grinned and gave him a cheeky wink. "If you were a muggle Alby, they would have locked you up in one of those nut houses by now."

"The correct term is asylums Lily, calling them nut houses isn't very nice."

The new voice behind him made Al jump again, his cousin Rose came waltzing into the room, with an air of what could only be described as haughtiness. Rose was great and all, Albus actually considered her his favorite cousin, but she'd spent a lot of time with Uncle Percy this summer and every time she did that she always seemed a little more snooty than usual. Their Uncle Ron said Percy was a bad influence on Rose and that her mother had been exactly like her at school, idolizing Percy for years until she finally realized how much of a pompous prat he was. Al chuckled to himself but stopped quickly at the sound of Lily's giggling.

"There he goes again. Mental this one, I'm telling ya."

She stopped giggling and hissed like an angry cat when Albus took off his slipper and threw it at her head. Rose just rolled her eyes at them and settled into the sofa opposite Lily, pulling a homework diary out of her already packed rucksack. Giving the pair one last imperious glance, she fished a quill and ink out too and started scribbling away.

Al slumped onto the sofa beside Rose and proceeded to look at his sister closely. She had dark bags under her eyes and looked rather pale. He was starting to get worried about her health. Ever since they had come back to Hogwarts two weeks ago, he'd noticed a change in his usually bright and bubbly sibling. She had become quieter than usual, not that she had been very boisterous to begin with, She'd always been a bit more reserved than the other Potter-Weasleys. Lately though, she seemed lost in her own little world and he could see a new wariness in her eyes even when she was joking and playing around, as she was right now.

"You ok Lils?" He asked her, concern evidently showing in his voice. She frowned at him and he hastened to add, "You just look a little peaky recently, not feeling well?" She had dropped her gaze to the book in her lap and muttered something about not sleeping well. Al's tone became cautious, "Maybe you should see Madame Quinn. I'm sure she could give you something that'll help." Albus held his breath, even so much as suggesting to Lily Potter that she needed help was generally unwise. Lily was very independent, always had been. When she was little and cut open her knee, whilst playing in the garden at The Burrow, she had refused to let Grandma Molly heal her. Instead she'd stubbornly insisted that she was a big girl now and that it didn't hurt. Grandma Molly had almost had a conniption but mum had finally coxed Lily down from the tree that she'd climbed into to escape her Grandmother, bribed her with a chocolate frog and healed her. Albus was surprised however when Lily didn't snap at him but instead sighed in defeat.

"I think I might do that, yeah. I just didn't want to bother her with something so silly." She looked at Al as if asking for reassurance that going to the nurse at her age, was not a silly thing to do.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind. She'll probably just give you a sleeping potion to help you out. No biggy." He smiled broadly, letting her know that she wasn't being a baby. "You need your sleep Lils, O.W.L.S this year remember? Need all the rest you can get to prepare."

She nodded and yawned involuntarily. Blinking the sleepiness away she looked down at her book once more and Al couldn't help but grin happily. She was reading the tale of George and the Dragon. It was one of his favorites and he used to read it to her when they were both younger. He couldn't help but miss those days, when they were just kids. Looking at his baby sister now, he realized that she was no longer the child who used to follow him around like a lost puppy. Lily was growing up and it made him a little sad to see the effect time was having on her. He wished she could just be that happy little girl forever, never having to worry about exams or the difficulties of life.

A comfortable, calm silence settled around the three Gryffindors. Lily continued with her reading. Rose was busy planing her day right down to what she was going to have for breakfast that morning, or so he assumed, peeking over her shoulder at her diary he noted that he was correct in his assumption and inwardly chuckled. Al sighed happily and closed his eyes briefly.

Sometime later Al felt a large hand shaking his shoulder forcefully. He opened his eyes blearily and came face to face with a grinning James Potter.

"Wakey wakey sleepy nickers. Quidditch practice in ten minutes. You are trying out this year aren't you?" He asked frowning doubtfully.

Al nodded and pushed James's face away with his hand. "Get yer ugly mug out of my face James. That is not something I want to see a close up of in the morning." He yawned widely and stretched his arms above his head. Shaking it a couple of times to clear the fogginess that was lingering from his unplanned nap. He stood and looked sullenly at James. His older brother had already changed into his Quidditch gear and was clutching his Firebolt Supreme in his hand, the shiny new Captains badge glinted proudly from it's place on his chest. James snorted and turned on his heel.

"Better get a move on little bro. If you're late for try outs, I wont be making an exception for you just because you're family." James called as he headed for the portrait.

Albus shook the remaining cobwebs from his mind and raced up the stairs to get ready. James, despite the laughing tone in which he'd spoken, was deadly serious. Al wouldn't be allowed to try out if he was late. After three unsuccessful attempts at putting his jumper on the right way around, Albus legged it through the castle and to the grounds. Puffing and panting he made it to the pitch with three minutes to spare. James quirked his eyebrow at him but made no comment.

The four other people who'd come to try out were lined up to the left side of James and Albus hurried to get into place at the end of the line, gripping the handle of his broom tightly. Unlike James's fabulously shiny new broom, that he'd gotten from his parents as a present for becoming quidditch captain, Al's broom was slightly worn. It was still in very good condition though considering his father and James had previously owned it. The vintage Firebolt in his hand had won more quidditch games than it had lost, it was considered a lucky charm in the Potter household and Albus was hoping that luck was on his side today.

Feeling slightly nauseous when James called his name he mounted his broom and focused his mind on the task ahead. Hoping against hope that he wouldn't make a fool of himself.

**Lily POV**

Lily followed the crowd into her first lesson of the day, History of Magic. She wasn't in a very talkative mood today so she shook her head at her friends as they gestured her over to them and chose instead to take a seat at the very front of the classroom. Nobody ever sat so close to the front in Binn's class, it wasn't so easy to fall asleep unnoticed at the front. Although Lily was pretty sure the ghostly Professor would take a while to notice a student, even if they fell asleep right in front of him.

Professor Binns waited for the class to settle into their seats and then started to drone on and on about the Goblin Rebellions of 1612. For a few moments Lily tried to concentrate on what he was saying but the dull and monotonous voice of the Professor was quickly causing her already tired mind to become even more drowsy. Her eyelids became heavier and she felt her self zoning out.

There was only five minutes to go according to the large clock behind Binns's desk and Lily stared at it, willing time to go faster. All of a sudden a flash of images entered her mind but they went by too quickly for Lily to understand what they meant. Startled, she looked around the room in bewilderment. The pictures had been so vivid in her mind but all she could remember were flashes of color. Fully awake now Lily looked at Professor Binns as something he said caught her attention.

"...In fact when suggestions were made to increase their productivity at the wizarding bank, the Goblins selfishly declined. They apparently considered themselves the only ones worthy of guarding it and felt no need to consider wizarding help. This may have been due to lingering resentment towards the wizarding community..."

"Actually I think the reason they declined the offer the Minister made at the time is because they had every reason not to trust him." Lily interrupted Binns's lecture, without knowing where the information coming out of her mouth had originated. Perhaps she'd overheard her Aunt Hermione talking about it once, she mused.

Binns looked up from his lectern and squinted at Lily. "Why would you think that Evans?" he was looking at her curiously. Lily, ignored the fact that he had just mistaken her for her grandmother and started to speak again, not actually knowing what had overcome her.

"Minister Osbert was believed to have been under the imperious curse. He was undoubtedly being controlled by Septimus Malfoy, his adviser. Who I might add, had an immense hatred of Goblins. He was believed to have caused the deaths of at least fourteen goblins, six of which were killed at his own hand." Lily ignored the now curious stares of her classmates. She didn't know how she knew all this, but she was certain that every single statement she had made was the truth.

"I don't know where you have gotten this information Evans but I'm afraid that this class is about facts not rumors." Binns gave her a look that said he didn't appreciate being interrupted and began to speak again, "Now as I was saying..."

Lily however had spoken again before she could help herself, "My name is Potter, Sir. And It's not a rumor, it's fact. Osbert was Malfoys puppet and the Goblins weren't going to let a man controlled by a known Goblin hater to interfere with their businesses. You can't blame them really. Wizards have been trying to suppress the Goblins for centuries and..."

"That really is enough Miss... Potter is it? As I said I really don't know where you have received this information but as I told you, I am here to teach you facts not fiction." Proffessor Binns was frowning at her now but Lily couldn't help herself. She was going to start defending herself again but the bell rang at just that moment.

The class however remained frozen in their seats looking back and forth between Lily and the Professor. Nothing like this had ever happened before. Nobody interrupted Binns. Nobody ever actually payed any attention to him. Lily arguing with him about Goblin facts, was the single most exciting thing that had ever happened in this class. Lily broke off her staring match with the ghost and huffily got to her feet. She'd prove him wrong. She was going to go straight to the library to find the information she had just recalled, from somewhere in her subconscious and then shove the hard evidence right under his nose until he apologized for talking to her like she was stupid.

**Albus POV**

He felt sick. He was going to vomit. Landing, unsteadily on the ground he turned to look at his older brother. James's mouth hung open in shock. Al could probably count each individual tooth, it was that wide. Al opened his mouth to say something but no words came out, just some sort of weird, garbled sound from the back of his throat. The whole team was on the ground now and they were all staring at him in varying states of shock.

Fred was the first to speak, "Al... what the hell man?" He looked at him incredulously. He didn't say anything else. He just stood there gawking at his younger cousin.

Albus fidgeted under the gaze of the older students and looked at the ground, his cheeks growing red. An intake of breath made his head shoot up and he stared directly into his brothers eyes. James looked pissed.

"Why in Merlin's saggy left tit..." He took a pause for breath, no doubt so that he could raise his voice even further, "...DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU PLAYED LIKE THAT?" His voice had become a roar now and James strode towards him with fire in his eye, "You're in."

Albus, who's own mouth was now gaping like a fish, stared at his brother in astonishment. "I'm... What?" The nauseous churning of his stomach, reminded him that he'd not eaten breakfast that morning and didn't, in fact have anything to throw up.

"You're in, you dolt. The other houses have no chance this year! Not with you on our team." Harry Potters eldest son looked around at his team with a wide toothy grin and was met by encouraging nods and exclamations of agreement. "I can't wait to see Nott's face when we go up against them next week. Slytherin is going to be slaughtered." He looked like a giddy little boy, who'd just been given World Cup tickets for Christmas.

Al blinked and resisted the urge to pinch himself. Was he dreaming? This couldn't be real. The Gryffindor Quidditch team were staring at him like he was some sort of super hero. The looks of adoration on their faces, reminded him of the various witches and wizards, who'd stared at his father every time they visited Diagon Alley as a family.

He couldn't understand why. He'd buggered up his last save spectacularly, barely managing to catch the quaffle, that Molly had thrown towards the left hoop. He'd managed to trap it between the tips of his trainers just before it passed through. His hands had been busy swatting at what he thought was a fly, by his ear. Only it hadn't been a fly. No. It was the golden snitch. Before he could register what was happening the quaffle had been flung towards him and he'd only had a split second to react. He'd grabbed hold of the fluttering golden ball and flung it at his brother who had been racing towards him, having spotted the snitch himself. "_CATCH!_"he had screamed as he'd rolled spectacularly on his broom and used his remaining limbs to grip the red leather of the quaffle.

Albus had expected to be screamed at when he landed on the ground. Not only had he almost missed saving the quaffle, he'd also thrown the snitch at his brothers face and had only watched in mortified horror as it hit him squarely in the forehead. James had at least had the sense to reach up and grasp it before it flew away again.

James shook his head at his little brothers stuttering and smiled a truly spectacular smile, the kind of smile that made at least half the girls in the school go weak at the knees. He pulled Albus into a massive bear hug and ruffled his hair. "You are going to win me the cup! My amazingly talented, little bro!"

"Seems like awesome quidditch skills do run in the family. Welcome to the team buddy." said Fred as he too came over to ruffle Al's hair.

After each member of the team congratulated him and he received awestruck handshakes from his competitors, the knowledge that he had made the team finally sunk in. They'd obviously thought his blunder in the air had been nothing short of miraculous and he'd be damned if he was going to correct them.

For the first time in his life, Albus felt like he was cooler than James.


	3. Chapter 2: Pity the Proud

**Chapter Two: Pity the Proud**

**Lily POV**

Scowling in frustration, Lily left the Library later that day. It had been a pointless excursion. No matter how many books she'd rummaged through, not a single one had confirmed the story that she had so furiously defended in History of Magic. Oh there were plenty of witness statements and theories inferring that Septimus Malfoy was indeed a lowly scoundrel and that he had a certain amount of influence with Minister Osbert. However, there was not one shred of evidence to suggest that the Minister had been under the imperious curse or that Malfoy was responsible for the deaths of 14 goblins.

Lily growled under her breath as she walked down the corridors and headed to the nearest staircase. Her stomach was rumbling, she hadn't eaten anything at all this morning. Lunch would be served in the Great Hall in just a few moments. She was so hungry she could eat a Hippogryff. As for those blooming Goblins, Malfoy and the corrupt Minister, well... She would go back to the library after lunch and do a bit more research before her Charms lesson. Not that it would do much good, she thought to herself angrily. Sure that she had already skimmed through the entire selection of books relating to the Goblin Rebellions, of which there were many, Lily didn't have much faith in her fruitless mission. She could write to her Aunt Hermionie, she mused. Aunt Hermionie always knew everything there was to know about well... pretty much everything. This thought filled her with a little hope and she turned at the corner of the corridor she was walking down. Abruptly, she came to a halt at the sight before her. She couldn't believe it. The very same Aunt Hermionie that she had just been thinking about, was heading towards the stone stairs of the entrance hall with her Uncle Ron in tow.

"Oi! What are you two doing here?" She shouted to catch their attention, running to catch up with them. Her Aunt gave her a surprised, yet happy look and quickly pulled Lily into a hug.

"Oi? Oi? Is that anyway to greet your favorite Uncle?" Ron's eyes twinkled at the sight of his niece.

"We were here to see Hugo. He's been in the hospital wing all morning." Pulling back from the hug she beamed at Lily.

Lily's smiled dropped and was instantly replaced with a look of pure terror. Hugo? In the hospital wing? His mum and dad called into Hogwarts? They'd never been called to the school before when he was sent there and he had been sent there rather a lot in the last five years. Hugo was accident prone to say the least and he managed to trip over his own feet on a daily basis. Lily's gut wrenched unpleasantly. Something truly awful must have happened to him. This was why she had been feeling so dreadful over the past couple of weeks, wasn't it? Hugo was seriously hurt and she'd known it was coming. Tears pricked her eyes and she started to hyperventilate. It was all her fault. If only she had told someone what she had felt, maybe they could have done something.

Hermionie caught on to Lily's sudden panic and quickly rushed to reassure her niece, "He's ok Lils. Just a fractured skull. He'll be just fine. Madame Quinn has already patched him up and he'll be back to his usual self tomorrow."

Lily gaped at her Aunt, just a fractured skull? But if what she was saying was true, he'd already been healed and was going to be ok. "What happened? Why are you here if he's going to be alright?" her words came out in a rush, the panicked feeling still not abating.

"He's an idiot, that's what. He tried out for the Hufflepuff Quidditch team this morning and went and got himself smacked in the head by a bludger." rolling her eyes, she turned to glare at her husband. "We told him not to try out. He's so clumsy, can't even walk in a straight line without falling over let alone ride a broom. Your Uncle Ronald however can't seem to stop talking about how proud he is of Dom, since she got signed by the Cannons and Hugo thought trying out for the team would impress his father."

Ron shifted uneasily under his wife's glare. "I didn't tell him to do it." He muttered under his breath.

Hermionie narrowed her eyes at him and huffed angrily. She turned away from her cowering husband and looked back to Lily, who was torn between blind panic and fits of giggles upon seeing her Uncle in trouble. "Madame Quinn had to inform us, due to it being a head injury. He could have suffered some brain damage apparently."

"Did he?" Lily squeaked.

"If he had it wouldn't really make much of a difference. I swear that boy has always been two knuts short of a sickle his entire life. Wonder where he gets that from." She glanced at Ron with her eyebrows raised. "But no, he's fine. No damage to his brain, just his ego."

Lily let out a breath that she hadn't even been aware that she was holding. Hugo was fine, nothing to worry about. She couldn't help feeling strangely disappointed though. If Hugo's accident wasn't the source of her constant worry, then what was?

**James POV**

"That is just for decorative purposes right?" James poked at the thick white bandage, wrapped around Hugo's head. "I mean your brains haven't actually given up the fight and started to abandon ship have they?"

Hugo scowled at him and knocked James's hand away."Sod off James."

"I'm serious dude. Lemme take a peek, I bet it's gross." He attempted to pull at the bandage, laughing at Hugo's clumsy attempts to push him away.

"James Sirius Potter! You leave those bandages alone or I will have to ask you to leave." Madame Quinn hurried over to Hugo's bedside and glared at James who was smirking at her cheekily.

"Ah you wouldn't do that Quinny, I'm your favorite student." He gave her a wink and she went bright red before scurrying away back to her desk.

Madame Quinn was rather young, in her late twenties. Her appointment at Hogwarts, as the new healer, had caused something of a ruckus last year. Many of the magical community doubted her ability to look after the students so fresh out of training. Madame Pomfrey however had insisted that she was the best person for the job and had informed the current Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, that she would be a perfectly reliable replacement. This had been good enough for old Minnie and she'd hired Eladora Quinn as soon as Poppy retired. It had taken a few months but finally even the most stalwart opposition had admitted defeat. Eladora Quinn was a very talented young witch and was extremely good at her job. James, being the rascal that he was, made it his mission to cause poor Madame Quinn to get flustered every time he was in her vicinity. She was a pretty witch, extremely intelligent and stern, yet even she couldn't resist succumbing to the devilish charms of one James Sirius Potter.

James smirked, he'd had all of the staff at Hogwarts wrapped around his little finger from the moment he'd stepped foot on the grounds at the age of eleven. He got away with practically everything and that was just the way he liked it. James removed his gaze from the bright pink witch, who was fussing with the papers on her desk nervously and caught his cousin rolling his eyes at him.

"Watch it Hugster, keep doing that and your eyes will fall out too."

"What are you doing here James and where's your fan-club?" Hugo grumped.

Now it was James's turn to roll his eyes. "I can't come and see my poor cousin on his death bed? I'm here to check in on you, dung-brain."

"Uh, huh. Here to take the piss more like. The fan-club?" Hugo asked again.

"Off with Albus somewhere I suppose." James replied airily. James's mood darkened. He couldn't help the feelings of resentment from bubbling to the surface. Just because Al had performed ok on the Quidditch pitch that morning, didn't give him the right to parade about the castle as if he owned it. Ok, that was a little harsh, to tell the truth his brother had been incredible but he wasn't going to admit that out loud for the second time today and Albus wasn't really parading about the castle but James's friends were certainly acting like he was some sort of king. James huffed in annoyance.

"Jealous Jamie?" Hugo inquired, he looked extremely satisfied to have touched a nerve.

"Me? Jealous of Al? Don't be ridiculous." James laughed uneasily. Hugo could always tell when James was putting on a show, it was one of the reasons they were so close, despite the age gap. Hugo was the only one who really knew how James ticked. That was why James had come to visit his cousin in the hospital wing, Hugo was always annoyingly comforting when James felt bad.

"Oh bugger off James. I know you, you're jealous and for what? So what if Al takes up some of the attention for once, he deserves it. He's always in been in your shadow Jamie and you're just too pigheaded to realize that he idolizes you, just like the rest of the idiots around here."

Hugo was right of course. James was always the center of attention and the one time his little brother took the spotlight, well, James hadn't liked it one bit. He had his reasons. James was, no matter how confident he seemed, always worried that people wouldn't love him as much as they did his father. The Great Harry Potter was famous all over the wizarding world and that was a hard thing to live up to. Ever since he had been born, James was expected to do great things, just like his father. James had enjoyed the constant attention and had always been a bit of a brat because of it. When Albus was born though, James had felt pushed to the side. Albus was the spitting image of their dad and what with James being such a troublemaker in school, everyone decided that the mild mannered, sweet little darling that was Albus Severus Potter would be the one to walk in his fathers footsteps. When James realized this he had quickly done everything he could to be just as great as his dad but there wasn't some great dark wizard hanging around for James to pop off so he'd had to admit defeat and admit to himself that he was never going to be exactly like his father.

"Look. Go find Fred and cause some trouble, that always cheers you up." Hugo suggested in a soft tone.

James looked up from where he had been glowering at the floor and quirked his lips. "Yeah. You're right, a bit of mischief is just what I need." He got up and patted Hugo awkwardly on the shoulder, "Don't go turning into a vegetable while I'm gone ok? Dunno what I would do without my therapist to keep me sane." He winked at Hugo, waved at the still flustered Madame Quinn and headed towards the door.

"Oi, James!" Hugo called as he was turning the handle. He looked back with a raised eyebrow. "Keep an eye on Lily for me would you? She's seems a bit off recently and hasn't properly hung out with me for a while." Hugo looked away from James and stared sadly at his covers. Apart from James, Lily was the only other member of their family who actually went out of her way to spend time with Hugo and it was clear that he was missing her. Hugo looked up when James didn't reply. James frowned and gave him nod before exiting the room.

What exactly was up with Lily these days? Hugo was right, she was a bit off this term. James felt a sudden guilt overcome him for not noticing this sooner and hurried off down the hall in search of his baby sister. If something was bothering his Lilykins he should find out what it was. 


	4. Authors Note

**Authors Note:**

**Heya guys, sorry I haven't updated in a while... I am writing and working on this story but I seem to be stuck in the middle of the action and need to finish writing the big scenes while they are still clear in my head... then I will go back and work on the chapters in between. Sorry . but I can't concentrate on the earlier chapters while the big ones are banging away in my brain, please be patient and I will update this week, I promise.**


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